91̽»¨ÊÓƵ

Dr Harriet Hunt

Research Associate, McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research

Genetic markers are a powerful tool for identifying geographic patterns of diversity, with potential to indicate where and how many times cultivated plants were domesticated, their routes of spread, and the evolution of particular phenotypic traits.

I am interested in the molecular evolution of both neutral markers and sequences coding for phenotypic characteristics in Panicum miliaceum and related wild species. We are using these markers as a complement the archaeological evidence to determine whether broomcorn millet was domesticated independently in China and in Eastern Europe.

This work is carried out in theÌýGlyn Daniel Laboratory for ArchaeogeneticsÌýin the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research.

Current projects:

Nuclear microsatellite diversity inÌýPanicum miliaceumÌý(collaboration with Yong-Jin Park, Konkuk University, Seoul, South Korea, and NIAB, Cambridge)

Ribosomal DNA intergenic spacer diversity inÌýPanicum miliaceumÌýand related species

Molecular basis of the waxy phenotype inÌýPanicum miliaceumÌý(collaboration with Kay Denyer, John Innes Centre, Norwich)

Reticulate evolution in the genusÌýPanicumÌý– evidence from nuclear sequences and in situ hybridisation (collaboration with Pat Heslop-Harrison, University of Leicester)

For more information about these projects, or if you have other millet-related interests, please contactÌýHarriet Hunt

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Millet plants (Panicum miliaceum) in the glasshouses at the 91̽»¨ÊÓƵ Botanic Garden

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Harriet Hunt in the Glyn Daniel Archaeogenetics Laboratory, McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research

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Panicum capillare – a species we're investigating as part of a study on wild relatives of broomcorn millet

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This work is supported by theÌýÌýand theÌý.

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